Friday, February 26, 2016

You could roast an expensive leg of lamb for Easter, which
would be lovely, but why not consider the lesser known, and just as delicious shoulder
roast? This underrated cut is less expensive, very flavorful, and much less
stressful.

We usually prepare the leg medium-rare to medium for maximum
enjoyment, which requires a little more finesse than a shoulder roast, which we’re
going to cook long and slow, until very tender. As long as you let the meat braise until it's falling off the bone, there's no way this isn't going to be great.

Obviously, we’re talking about a completely different
texture than roasted lamb, but if you like things like shredded beef, and
pulled pork, you will be down with this. As I mentioned in the video, I wanted
you to focus on the super easy technique, and not necessarily the ingredients I
used.

Honey, vinegar, and mint are classic with lamb, but any
other sweet/sour approach should work nicely. You could even cheat, and use your
favorite barbecue sauce (you know my favorite), which would be perfect
with this rich, succulent cut, as well. I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Every year about this time, I try to do some kind of
culinary nod to St. Patrick’s Day, and this colcannon hash is the latest
example. I really loved how this came out, and it made a beautiful, and
delicious base for poached eggs, but there was one problem. Apparently, I
didn’t invent this.

I thought I did, as I do with almost all the new recipes I create,
but I figured I’d do a search anyway, just to confirm this assumption of
singular brilliance. So I did, and it quickly became apparent that many others
had the very same idea. Good for them.

I realize St. Patrick’s Day brunch isn’t really a thing, but
if it were, this would be perfect. Although, we might have some leftover corned
beef the day after, which would make this even more amazing; so maybe we should
forget St. Paddy’s Day breakfast, and turn this into a hearty, day-after hangover
cure instead. Either way, I really do hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Friday, February 19, 2016

Other than a completely unnecessary braising step right in
the middle of the video, this oxtail ragu came out amazingly well. My thought was to roast the oxtails in the sauce, in
a slow oven to see if I could achieve the tender-sticky meat I know and love,
whileslowly reducing the sauce at the same time. I couldn’t.

Well,
actually, it would have eventually gotten tender, but I wasn’t prepared to find
out how long that was going to be. Like I said several times during the video, I want you to
roast your oxtail and onion until nicely browned, but then transfer
everything into a pot, add the rest of the ingredients, and simmer until the meat comes off the bones with
minimal effort.

The only way to screw up this incredibly succulent cut of
beef is to not cook it long enough, which is why I better not read any 3-star
recipe reviews that say, “Good flavor, but wasn’t as tender as I wanted.” Just
remember to not braise, and keep simmering until it yields completely to your
fork. I really do hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4 portions:

(Pro tip: since this does take so many hours to simmer, it's almost always best to make this the day before you serve it)

Tuesday, February 16, 2016

You hear stracciatella often referred to as, “Italian egg
drop soup,” which is fine, but knowing the name actually means little, torn
rags, or shreds, works so much better metaphorically.

When you’ve been run
ragged, stracciatella is always there for you. After a long, infuriating day at
work, you want something fast, filling, and comforting; ideally made with
ingredients you already have on hand.This is all that, and less.

By the way, if you’re a normal person, and don’t have
homemade broth in the freezer, this works perfectly well with a high-quality,
packaged broth. As you eat this, hopefully with some nice crusty bread, imagine
all those little “rags” floating in the bowl are all your torn-up problems, both
real and imagined. They were there, and then they were gone. You just won, with
soup. I hope you give this stracciatella a try soon. Enjoy!

Friday, February 12, 2016

The theme of this torrone post was originally about making
this gorgeous candy for your Valentine, but then I realized what would be even
better than making this for your sweetheart, would be making with your
sweetheart.

While very easy, this procedure does take about one and a
half hours to complete, and most of that time is spent standing at the stove, stirring,
which is why tag-teaming this Italian confection makes the job much easier, and
I’ll assume a lot more fun.

By the way, this is the real way to make torrone, and by “real,”
I mean the really old way. Today, most candy makers use a much faster method,
where a caramelized sugar syrup is simply added to the whipped egg whites. I’ve
tried this both ways, and while the modern technique is way faster, I much
prefer this method. It seems to have more soul, whatever that means.

Using this ancient technique, you don’t need to worry about
precise timing, specific temperatures, or potentially painful burns. Besides,
standing and stirring something on the stove for that long is surprisingly
therapeutic. Watching the ingredients slowly, and magically change, as your
home fills with the sweet aroma of warm honey, is almost as enjoyable as the
amazing candy you end up with. Almost.

The visual clues, and times I give in the video should be
enough, but don’t forget the cold water trick I showed you. That’s a great way
to check you work, and sneak a taste. I hope you give this a try very soon.
Enjoy!

Tuesday, February 9, 2016

When you go over the things you really want in a Valentine’s
dessert, this ultra-simple zabaglione checks all the boxes. Assuming that your
sweetheart enjoys things like sweet, juicy fruit enveloped in a rich, but
impossibly light custard, this should work out nicely.

I like to use a dry Marsala wine, but sweet Marsala is also
a popular choice. If you use the sweet variety you’ll need to cut down or
eliminate the sugar. If you’re not into
warm wine foams, you can literally use any other flavorful liquid, and the
technique will work the same.

You may need to change the garnish, but things like coffee,
fruit juices, and pretty much any other liquor, or liqueur, will work with this
technique. Experiment, and see what happens. So, whether you make this for that
certain someone this Valentine’s Day, or just for a random weeknight treat, I
really do hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Friday, February 5, 2016

I had everything I needed to shoot a
brand new chicken wing video, except for one key ingredient; a working oven.
Yes, my oven decided to take the rest of Super Bowl week off, as did my oven repairman, but
these bacon jalapeno popper puffs came out so well, I decided to designate this
as an official blessing in disguise.

These pepper poppers in puff form
really did come out incredibly well, as long as you don’t have a problem with
lots of unsightly dark spots. Since we loaded these with so much diced pepper,
the pieces on the outside caramelized (which is chef-speak for burned), and my
beautiful, golden-brown balls were spotted with golden-black.

Apparently, I’m having more of a
problem with the appearance than your average viewer, at least according to the
first wave of YouTube comments, but I may still try to figure out a way to make
these a little more camera friendly next time. Maybe I’ll puree the peppers
first, or possibly char off the skin, which I believe gets even darker
than the flesh. Stay tuned.

Superficial beauty aside, if you enjoy
the gut-bombs that are classic, bacon-wrapped, jalapeno poppers, I think you’ll
love these shockingly light puffs. All the same flavors are there, especially when served
with the easy cream cheese dip, and the prep is much easier. I really hope you
give these a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 40 Bacon Jalapeno
Popper Puffs:

For the dough:

2/3 cup water

3 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon bacon fat

1 teaspoon kosher salt (or 1/2 teaspoon
fine salt)

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

2 eggs

Then add:

2 ounces extra sharp white cheddar
cheese

1/2 cup finely diced jalapeno peppers

1/3 cup finely chopped bacon

pinch cayenne

pinch freshly ground black pepper

- Fry at 375 F. for about 3 1/2
minutes, or until golden-brown and cooked through

Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Welcome to this year’s installment of “Get Rich Quick with
Chef John,” where you cash in on my mystical method for picking Super Bowl
winners, using the lost art of wing bone reading. I know it sounds crazy, but if
you think this is some kind of joke, think again. In the 49 years I’ve been doing this, there hasn’t been a
single (major) university study proving these results aren’t 100% accurate. Not
one single study.

Sure, we’ve had a couple of recent, very minor “discrepancies,”
but instead of wasting time arguing who's at fault, or who lost who’s college
fund, I prefer to look toward the future. This year the bones point to a decisive Carolina victory,
and while I’ll be personally rooting for Old Man Manning, if you want to win
money, you’ll put everything you have on the Panthers.

I’m just glad the
Patriots aren’t in it. They’re shady. Anyway, good luck, and I’ll apologize in
advance for any income tax issues that pop up after this windfall. Good luck, and as always, enjoy!